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Missy Misdemeanor Elliott

Da Real World

EastWest/Elektra

On the video of this album's lead single “She's a Bitch”, The Supa Dupa Fly herself is dressed up with a look she's dubbed “Ghetto S&M:” bald, spray-painted, sporting rhinestones, and packed into a body suit, complete with a spiked G-string, Elliott is tossing down tough-talkin' lines for all the world to hear. That harsh persona is part comic book and part real world, but it certainly helps explain how she's helped bust up the once exclusive boy's club that ruled rap.

Writer, producer, and hip-hop queen, Elliott's sophomore album builds upon the platinum success of 1997's Supa Dupa Fly. From the aforementioned video through other tracks like the lusty “Hot Boyz” and the scathing shot at style stealers (“Beat Biters”), Elliott leaves no doubt as to exactly who's in charge.

The disc, produced by Timbaland, is loaded with duets, some of them duds, like the pairing with Eminem in “Busa Rhyme,” but others far more successful, like Missy's soul and hip-hop match with Big Boi of Outkast and Nicole on “All N My Grill.”